A Journey
by vanillafire
Summary: Roy and Marth come across one another while they are journeying for something. They both want different things, but they have one thing in common, which they will soon find out! Shonen-ai, possibly yaoi. Cuteness ahoy!
1. While Walking

**Disclaimer:**

I don't own any of the characters from Fire Emblem, apart from Roy, who lives in a little cage at the foot of my bed. Nintendo can have Marth if they absolutely must. 

**Author's note:**

This story is intended to become **shonen-ai** and possibly **yaoi**, depending on what I feel is the right level for our young heroes when they get there. :D 

If you dislike this idea, I'd advise you to stay away from later chapters, as they'll most definitely contain 'boy love' (two young men in love), with fluff and things like that, and possibly more. The rating will, I'm sure, get higher with each chapter I post. If you want a high-quality Roy and Marth romance adventure, read on; I'll try to provide it for you. ^_^ 

* * *

Through the trees up ahead, he could see someone sitting by the lake he was heading for. He hadn't spoken to anyone in a long, long time; perhaps this was the moment to break his solitude, after what had happened not so many moons before.

Marth began to walk a little faster, the twigs beneath his feet cracking, until he emerged from the forest and saw the person staring straight at him a few metres away. It was a young man, shorter than himself, with a shock of red hair that seemed to glow in the sunset. A sword was set down by the log he had been resting on before he had heard Marth coming.

"I was wondering if I could perhaps join your camp tonight," Marth said softly, making sure the boy could see he wasn't armed. "It's been a long time since I had some company."

The young man considered this for a moment. "You may, if you tell me your name and where you have come from."

"I am Marth, from the Kingdom of Altea."

"_Prince_ Marth?"

"I have nothing to be prince of. Altea was destroyed several months ago. I'm just Marth, now."

"You are still royalty, whatever the state of the kingdom." The boy bowed deeply, his hair flopping down over his face. Straightening, he announced himself to be Roy, son of the ruler of the Pharae Principality, where they currently were. He gestured to the log, inviting Marth to sit.

"I am sorry I didn't immediately welcome you," Roy said as he sat beside the prince. "I couldn't be sure of your intentions."

Marth smiled. "Don't trouble yourself; I would have asked the same of any stranger." He released the fastening of his cape and let it slide to the ground, doing the same with his breast plate but with more care. "What leads you to be travelling alone, Roy?"

The boy looked embarrassed. "I wanted to get away from things for a while, before I become General of our army permanently. Things have been… very stressful, until recently."

"An admirable motive," Marth said. "A journey to clear your head will refresh you for your duties to come." He now unbuckled his scabbard from his belt and laid it on the grass beside Roy's. "You must be very skilled indeed, to have become a General at such a young age."

"I had to. My father was ill, and there was no one else to do it. I learned quickly." After a small pause, Roy turned to the swordsman. "What of you? Why are you travelling alone so far from home?"

"I don't know." Marth fell silent, fixing his gaze on the waters of the lake, watching the sun melt into them. Roy shifted on the log, making himself more comfortable. Eventually, Marth spoke.

"Altea was completely destroyed, as you know. I saw it, and there was nothing left. Nothing at all, not even a single tree left standing. None of my people survived. So I just started to walk, and I kept on walking. I don't know what I'm doing, or where I'm going. I have no purpose. I'm just hoping that something to give me direction will present itself to me at some point on this journey."

"Do you plan to rebuild your kingdom?"

"From what?" Marth murmured. "All my people are gone. It could never be truly rebuilt."

Roy looked guilty. "I apologise, Marth. I shouldn't have brought this up."

"No, it is probably good for me to think about things such as this again. Like I said earlier, it has been a long time since I had some company."

They fell into silence for a while. Roy went to collect some wood from the forest before the sun set completely, and set a small fire going when he returned.

Marth opened his pack and presented the younger boy with a bag containing a rabbit he had caught earlier that day.

"I shall skin this for us, unless you have food you would rather have," Marth said, glad that he had something of worth to share.

"Rabbit!" A big smile lit up Roy's face. "I haven't had anything fresh for days!" He threw another branch onto the fire with a little flourish. "All I've had is dried meat and some old potatoes."

"Looks like I came at the right time, then," Marth said, pleased at how animated Roy had become because of a single rabbit. How could a boy this young be expected to run an army? He couldn't have been older than sixteen! Marth himself had not had such responsibility at that age. It was good, then, to see the young man smile.

After they had eaten and talked for a long while, Marth realised that Roy was no longer paying attention to the conversation. He looked at him to see the boy's chin resting on his chest and his eyes shut, asleep. He'd probably been that way for a while.

Marth lifted himself off the log and took Roy's bedroll from his pack, laying it out by the fire before carrying the boy over to it and covering him with his cape. Roy weighed very little and was shockingly lean without his armour on. Marth set out his own bed on the other side of the fire and sat on it, staring at the flickering flames for a while, until he too succumbed to sleep.


	2. To Help You

**Disclaimer:**

If anyone ever gets confused about this, I don't own Marth or Roy. :D 

**Author's note:**

While things are being taken very slowly at present, this story **will** become shonen-ai. If this doesn't float your boat, I advise you to jump ship pretty quickly. :D 

Feel free to hit me with any comments you have, positive or negative - anything constructive is greatly appreciated! "Thank you"s to Joh, Setsuna and Riku, for reviewing the first chapter. 

* * *

When Roy awoke, he found himself wrapped up in his bedroll, snuggled up to his cape. Marth must have put him to bed, as he didn't remember doing any of this for himself.

He pushed himself upright with his elbows and glanced over at Marth; the young prince was still sleeping, hanging half out of his sleeping bag, his chest rising and falling gently. The fire between them had burned itself out in the night, leaving just a smear of charcoal and a few sticks remaining.

Quietly slipping out of his bedroll, Roy stretched, yawned and sleepily weaved his way down the shore of the lake to splash some water on his face. The reflection on the glassy surface showed that he had a serious attack of bed hair, which he attempted to slick down with some more water. Seconds later, however, it all sprang back, and he decided to just surrender to it and return to the camp.

Marth still wasn't up, so Roy sat down on the log they'd used as a seat the night before and waited; he was in no hurry to go anywhere, and he hadn't the heart to wake the prince when he looked so peaceful. This was the first time Roy had seen Marth look happy. He had been smiling, last night, but they had been the smiles of a man who couldn't quite remember whether he was allowed to or not: self-conscious and on guard. The loss of his kingdom had very obviously affected him in a way that Roy knew he could never fully understand.

Marth had come an awfully long way, too. Altea was across the sea, on a whole different continent. Either he had run out of places to walk, or he'd failed to pay attention to where he was going, to come to Pharae. It was a lot of walking.

What would happen once Marth was awake? Roy had had nothing planned for this day before the prince had joined him the night before, and it sounded as if Marth was just drifting as well, but would he want to be alone again? Marth was troubled with many things that required thinking upon, and he didn't want to get in his way. 

But he didn't want to leave him, either.

It wasn't something he could properly explain, but Roy didn't want to watch the prince just walk away and disappear. Marth intrigued him: he wanted to make him happier, wanted to help him realise what it was that he needed to do to set his life moving again, and he wasn't quite sure why that was. It wasn't pity, it wasn't because he felt he had to… it was just because he liked him. Yes, he liked him. He'd known Marth for only an evening, and already he had left his mark on him as someone he didn't just want to write off as a pleasant acquaintance.

__

I wonder what he's really looking for, Roy thought, as he twiddled a piece of grass between his thumbs, in preparation for trying, as he always did, to make it squeak. _If he doesn't find it, he's going to be walking for a very long time_. It was an unenviable position, not knowing what you wanted. All Roy required was a rest, a holiday, before taking up the duties expected of him. He had a home to go back to at the end of his journey.

Typically, the grass refused to squeak. Roy let it fall to the ground, wondering whether he was ever going to get the knack of it. Grass-blowing was hardly a life skill, but he felt that he should at least be able to whistle through his fingers or blow grass if he were to become an army general: it would be useful in the field, and, well, what kind of soldier couldn't do either? The answer was, of course, _this_ soldier, but it wasn't the kind of answer that suited the question very well.

There was movement from beside the burned out fire.

"I never got the hang of that either," Marth said, wriggling out of his bedroll. "I'm glad to see you haven't given up yet, like I did. I hear it suddenly clicks with you and then you never forget." He walked over to Roy and sat down next to him on the log. "I didn't sleep too much longer than you, did I?"

After they had eaten breakfast and packed up their belongings, the two swordsmen walked back up to the edge of the forest where Marth had come from the day before.

"Thank you for sharing your camp with me," the blue haired prince said, adjusting the straps on his pack. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Roy. I hope being a General full time suits you."

"I…" Roy paused. He'd worried earlier about Marth leaving. "If it isn't too forward of me, I'd quite like to continue travelling with you, for a little while. I enjoyed your company last night. If it wouldn't be too much of an imposition, that is." _Why did he feel so worried that Marth would say no?_

"I enjoyed last night too, Roy," the prince replied, a small smile playing over his lips. "I would very much like to journey with you a little longer." He wasn't sure, but Roy thought Marth looked relieved about something. "I just hadn't wanted to distract you from your vacation."

"A new friend would be very welcome. A holiday all by myself would get boring. And… I want to help you, if I can."

"Help me?" Marth said softly.

"To find what it is that you're looking for." It sounded a little strange, actually voiced aloud, and Roy could feel heat radiating from his cheeks as he wondered what the prince would make of it.

"You are very kind, Roy," Marth said. "I just hope I don't prove to be infuriating to aid. When I say I don't know what I'm doing, I'm not jesting."

"That's part of the challenge, my friend." On impulse, Roy reached out and clasped the prince's shoulder, to try to make him feel more at ease, but snatched his hand away as his brain caught up with his body. He wasn't quite sure why he'd felt the need to do that; Marth, however, seemed to have taken it in his stride, and looked more mollified than he had done before.

"Let's go somewhere, Roy," he said eagerly, hoisting the straps of his pack up again. "I wish to see more of Lucia, if you'll show me."

"I'll show you whatever you want to see," Roy said, as both young men began walking parallel to the forest, along the shore of the lake. Neither really knew where they were going, but somehow, it didn't matter.


	3. I Love You

**Disclaimer:**

I'm sure the original creators of Marth and Roy never intended anything like this to happen, so there's probably no confusion as to who actually owns them. :D 

**Author's note:**

Things actually happen in this chapter! Slowly, again, as always, but they happen none the less. 

I have a feeling that this is the final chapter. It was always intended to be a short experiment, to see whether I could actually write fanfiction again, and shonen ai at that. If you could tell me whether I've succeeded, I would be very grateful indeed. 

I may write more in the future. But for now: I hope you enjoy what is, to all intents and purposes, the climax of this story. Roy and Marth are just **made** for each other. :D 

* * *

"So where are we now?" Marth asked as they arrived at a small copse of trees a little way away from the track they'd been walking on. This was to be their resting place for the night, as dusk was once again approaching.

Roy dropped his pack and turned to look at the prince. "I, ah, don't actually know. I've never been on this road before."

"It'll be a new experience for the both of us, then." Marth smiled and placed his pack next to Roy's on the grass. "You've shown me so many new places these past few days; it's about time you saw some too."

"Just as long as I don't get us completely lost," Roy said quietly. He sat down heavily and crossed his legs beneath him, slumping forward a bit.

"Hm?" Marth dropped down beside him, crouching. "It doesn't matter if we get lost, Roy. In fact, it might be fun - an adventure, you know?"

"That's what I worry about," Roy murmured.

"Do you want to get back to your home soon, then?" Marth didn't understand the sudden change in his friend. All day, they'd been chatting and enjoying themselves, just as they had done on all the days before this one, and he had shown no signs of being upset or worried about anything. Marth himself had begun to feel lighter of heart than he had done since he had left the ruins of Altea, and he knew it was because he enjoyed Roy's company. He had hoped that Roy felt the same way.

"It's not that I want to go back," the fire-haired boy said at length. "I just… I'm scared."

"Scared?"

"I'm scared that I'm doing this on purpose. And I don't know what that would mean."

Marth was bewildered. "What is it you think you're doing on purpose? I can assure you that, whatever it is, it won't make me think any differently of you."

"Getting lost. I think I'm getting us lost on purpose," Roy said after a pause. He turned his gaze from the floor to the prince. "I think I need to go and think about some things. I'll be back sometime tonight."

"Whatever you want to do, Roy," Marth said as the boy lifted himself up and ran off towards the grassy fields that surrounded their copse. He watched Roy run until his figure had disappeared from view into the long grass.

__

What was that about? he wondered as he collected some convenient sticks from underneath the trees in order to build a fire to cook on_. Whatever it is, it has to be pretty important for him to want to be alone_. This concerned him, because Roy had had no such problem before he had met him, and logic suggested that it was therefore somehow his fault. It had to be something he had done: his friend would have talked it over with him if he had felt able to. Oh, it would be terrible if he managed to pass on to Roy the sadness that he felt for his country and his subjects! That was the last thing he wanted to do to the kind boy who had made it his mission to make him happy again.

How long would it be before Roy came back? And why was he scared that he was getting them lost on purpose? What end would be achieved by becoming lost by design? These were questions that he couldn't even begin to find answers for.

The fire was taking nicely now, but Marth didn't know whether to start cooking supper or not. He wanted to eat with Roy, not leave something cold for him for when he returned. He would sit, and wait, for his friend to come.

Marth didn't know how long he had been asleep for; all he remembered was sitting and thinking by the fire for a little while. It was completely dark now, the stars shining in the sky and the moon large. The air was cooler, too, and felt fresher than it had in the day.

As he pulled himself up into a sitting position, he saw Roy sitting opposite him, on the other side of the fire. It hadn't burned itself out, so his friend must have been feeding it while he had slept.

Marth waved at him with a weak smile, not quite sure what he should say.

"I'm sorry I ran off like that," Roy said, looking into the flames that made his hair seem to burn a brighter red than normal. "I just… really needed to do some thinking."

"You're quite entitled to do whatever you feel you have to do, Roy," Marth said gently. "I'm just glad that you returned okay after not taking your sword with you."

The boy blushed at this. "It was a mistake I won't make again," he said, looking even more intently into the fire, avoiding meeting Marth's eyes. "I know I could get into danger without it."

Wanting to change a subject that was obviously embarrassing his friend, Marth said: "I wasn't asleep for too long after your return, was I? I always seem to be sleeping and leaving you on your own."

"I like watching you sleep," Roy said, and then instantly added: "I mean, it's nice to just sit and relax without having to actually say anything, you know?"

Marth nodded thoughtfully. "I quite agree." He lazily threw another branch onto the fire and said, "Are you hungry at all?"

"Not really, but… thank you for waiting for me. It was very thoughtful of you."

"Think nothing of it. I couldn't have had you come back and be hungry."

As Marth began to prepare food for himself, the two young men fell into silence. Roy was paying close attention to his sword, most likely trying to compensate for having left it behind by sharpening it carefully, to be doubly sure that he could fend off anyone with sinister intentions.

After Marth had eaten, he stood up slowly and sat down next to Roy on the other side of the fire.

"You're still quiet," he said. "I worry that it's something that I've done to offend you."

Still avoiding looking at him, Roy murmured: "You've done nothing wrong, Marth. Quite the opposite. I'm… sorry that I'm like this tonight."

"You don't need to apologise. I've had my share of dark moments too. I'm just concerned about you. And curious… but you don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to."

"No, I need to tell you. I know I do," Roy said, more to himself than to Marth. He sat up a little bit more, and for the first time that night looked straight at the prince. "I said I was scared, because I thought I was getting us lost on purpose. I was scared, because getting lost would mean that we'd spend more time together."

"But that's nothing to be scared of!" Marth interjected. "I'm flattered that you feel like that."

Roy shook his head. "Getting lost and spending more time with you makes me scared because of… the reason I want to spend time with you. It frightens me." He returned to looking at the fire again.

"The reason you want to spend more time with me…?" Marth wondered what the swordsman was going to say. 

"It's because… I think I love you," Roy whispered. But it was too quiet to be heard, and Marth didn't want to ask for a repeat when it had obviously been hard for Roy to say. He waited for the boy to say it again, if he was going to.

"I… think I love you," Roy said a little louder, as if testing out the words to see what they sounded like. "I… I love you, Marth. I realised it this evening, and it scared me. So I'm sorry if it scares you too." If he had allowed Marth to see his face, he would have seen it burn as bright as the flames of the fire.

"Roy…" Marth had not expected this. "I… this is a lot to take in. But until I say something that makes any sense, I want you to know that nothing about you or the way you feel about me scares me."

Roy was visibly relieved, and the slight shift in the way he sat showed that he was, at least, a bit happier at having confessed what had been troubling him.

Perhaps a minute passed before Marth spoke again.

"Roy," he said.

The boy shifted his gaze from the fire to the prince again.

"I don't know whether this would be a mistake, but I… I think it's something I have to do."

Roy was about to question him, but the chance was snatched away with his breath as Marth softly touched his lips with his own. The prince's eyes fluttered open, meeting Roy's for the briefest of moments before surrendering himself to the emotion that the boy had given so much to confess.

"Roy," Marth said, when they eventually separated. "I love you too." He pulled the boy closer and wrapped his arms around him, trembling as they kissed again, less timidly this time. Roy took Marth's hand and squeezed it, before parting his lips slightly, a silent enquiry. The prince answered with a further squeeze, and suddenly he was feeling Roy, he was tasting Roy, he was _loving_ Roy, and he knew that the night was never going to end.


End file.
